Compiled by Julie Leupold
TOP STORIES
Hedge fund Elliott Associates LP made an unsolicited bid to buy Epicor Software Corp., an Irvine-based maker of business software, for $566 million. The offer sent Epicor’s stock soaring last week. Elliott is one of Epicor’s biggest shareholders, with a little more than a 10% stake. The offer is 20% more than what Epicor’s stock was at before the bid. Epicor, which has seen its shares fall by about 40% in the past year with a market value of about $500 million last week, is set to “carefully consider and review” the proposal and “respond in due course.”
Lake Forest-based Western Digital Corp. is reported to be in talks to buy the disk drive business of Japan’s Fujitsu Ltd. Reports from Japanese newspapers and Reuters say a deal could be worth $662 million to $945 million. Other companies are said to be talking to Fujitsu. If a deal comes about, it would double Western Digital’s market share in 2.5-inch drives used in laptops to about 30%.
TECHNOLOGY
Newport Beach-based chipmaker Con-exant Systems Inc. said it sees higher-than-expected profits for the September quarter. Conexant said it expects net profits of $11.9 million to $12.9 million for its quarter ended Oct. 3. In July, the company forecast profits of $6.4 million to $8.4 million. Conexant’s revenue forecast was unchanged at $120 million to $125 million. Analysts on average had expected a profit of $7.4 million on sales of $122.3 million.
REAL ESTATE
Irvine-based homebuilder California Coastal Communities Inc. said it reworked $210 million worth of bank loans, which should allow it to better finance the construction of homes at its Brightwater development in Huntington Beach. The reworked credit facility, made with two bank syndicates and managed by KeyCorp, defers $25 million of debt payments that were due at the end of the year and preserves $75 million in borrowing capacity.
The Anaheim City Council unanimously approved a plan to build a 120-room Marriott hotel on high-profile property along Ball Road near Disneyland. Construction of the hotel is expected to begin by early next year even as Marriott International Inc. forecast a steeper drop for its 2009 earnings amid falling profits.
FINANCE
The newly formed fund of Irvine-based bank consultant Carpenter and Co. is expected to invest $6 million into San Luis Obispo-based Mission Community Bancorp. Carpenter Community BancFund LP is set to make its first deal by acquiring nearly 25% of the community bank’s shares. The deal is awaiting approval from the Federal Reserve, according to The San Luis Obispo Tribune.
Foothill Ranch-based American Sterling Bank received a cash infusion to meet the demands of regulators, according to a report in the Kansas City Star newspaper. Larry Dodge, chief owner of the bank’s Foothill Ranch-based parent company American Sterling Corp., tapped an insurance subsidiary to provide $7.5 million to the bank. In the past two months, Dodge has provided $20.5 million in funding for American Sterling Bank to help meet regulators’ capital requirements.
Irvine-based Resources Connection Inc., a provider of finance and other consultants to companies on a project basis, reported a higher quarterly profit fueled by a rise in international sales. The company grew its profit 7.8% to $12.5 million for the three months ended Aug. 30, beating Wall Street’s expected $11.3 million. Revenue grew 6.8% to $207.3 million, slightly missing Wall Street’s expected $210 million. U.S. sales were flat for the quarter. Resources Connection’s global sales grew 26.5%, according to the company.
Auto lender Consumer Portfolio Services Inc. in Irvine sold $199 million worth of loans packaged as bonds to an affiliate of Citigroup Inc. Consumer Portfolio used the proceeds of the sale to pay off a loan. So far, the company has raised $510 million in bond sales in a tough market this year. It projects doing about $600 million for the year, down from an earlier forecast of $700 million to $800 million.
OTHER NEWS
Daniel W. Heath was sentenced to 127 years in state prison for masterminding an investment fraud that took the life savings of hundreds of Orange County seniors. Heath, 52, headed Daniel W. Heath & Associates Inc., an investment firm that had offices in Brea and Hemet. He was convicted on 400 felony counts in January after a four-month trial in Corona. Also convicted were his father, John W. Heath, and a salesman, Denis T. O’Brien. John Heath died in state custody in August at 82. O’Brien was sentenced in April to 40 years.
